Publications
Peer-reviewed research
A curated selection of 23 peer-reviewed publications across three research programs, with 1,253+ citations indexed below. The complete list, including conference abstracts and co-authored working papers, is maintained on Google Scholar (total: 1,557 citations; h-index 26).
- 2025Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders10 citations
Metabolomic profiles in Jamaican children with and without autism spectrum disorder
Yazdani A, Samms-Vaughan M, Saroukhani S, Bressler J, Hessabi M, Tahanan A, Grove ML, Gangnus T, Putluri V, Kamal AHM, Putluri N, Loveland KA, Rahbar MH
Untargeted metabolomic comparison of Jamaican ASD cases and matched controls, identifying candidate metabolic pathways associated with ASD status.
AutismDOI: 10.1007/s10803-024-06485-1 · PMID: 38560734 - 2024PLoS One3 citations
Absolute concentration estimation of COVID-19 convalescent and post-vaccination IgG antibodies
Klegerman ME, Peng T, Seferovich I, Rahbar MH, Hessabi M, Tahanan A, Wanger A, Grimes CZ, Ostrosky-Zeichner LZ, Koster K, Cirillo JD, Abeydeera D, De Lira S, McPherson DD
Method paper on absolute quantification of IgG antibodies in convalescent and post-vaccination sera during the COVID-19 pandemic.
MethodsDOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0311777 · PMCID: PMC11530011 - 2024JAMA Neurology22 citations
Endovascular thrombectomy treatment effect in direct vs transferred patients with large ischemic strokes: a prespecified analysis of the SELECT2 trial
Sarraj A, Hill MD, Hussain MS, Abraham MG, Ortega-Gutierrez S, Chen M, Kasner SE, Churilov L, Pujara DK, Johns H, Blackburn S, Hassan AE, Campbell BCV, SELECT2 Investigators (incl. M. Hessabi, Data Manager)
Prespecified SELECT2 subgroup analysis comparing thrombectomy benefit between patients presenting directly to thrombectomy centers versus those transferred in.
StrokeDOI: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2023.5481 · PMCID: PMC10853865 - 2024The Lancet45 citations
Endovascular thrombectomy plus medical care versus medical care alone for large ischaemic stroke: 1-year outcomes of the SELECT2 trial
Sarraj A, Abraham MG, Hassan AE, Blackburn S, Kasner SE, Ortega-Gutierrez S, Hussain MS, Chen M, Rahbar MH, Hill MD, Grotta JC, Ribo M, Campbell BCV, SELECT2 Investigators (incl. M. Hessabi, Data Manager)
One-year follow-up of the SELECT2 trial, showing durable benefit of endovascular thrombectomy over medical care alone in large ischaemic stroke.
StrokeDOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(24)00045-5 - 2024Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders14 citations
Additive or interactive associations of food allergies with glutathione S-transferase genes in relation to ASD and ASD severity in Jamaican children
Saroukhani S, Samms-Vaughan M, Bressler J, Lee M, Byrd-Williams C, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA, Rahbar MH
Evaluates whether food allergies act additively or interactively with GST genotypes in shaping ASD severity, connecting pediatric allergy epidemiology back to genetic susceptibility in ASD.
AutismDOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05813-7 - 2024BMC Pediatrics4 citations
Factors associated with blood mercury concentrations and their interactions with three glutathione S-transferase genes (GSTT1, GSTM1, and GSTP1): an exposure assessment study of typically developing Jamaican children
Zaman SF, Samms-Vaughan M, Saroukhani S, Bressler J, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA, Rahbar MH
Exposure-assessment study in typically developing Jamaican children quantifying how GST genotypes modify the diet-to-blood-mercury relationship.
- 2023Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders8 citations
Interactive associations of eczema with glutathione S-transferase genes in relation to autism spectrum disorder and its severity in Jamaican children
Saroukhani S, Samms-Vaughan M, Bressler J, Lee M, Byrd-Williams C, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA, Rahbar MH
Gene-environment interaction analysis showing eczema modifies the association between GST polymorphisms and ASD severity.
- 2023Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders5 citations
Are there sex differences in interactive associations of environmental exposure to Lead, Mercury, and Manganese with GST genes in relation to ASD in Jamaican children?
Zwiya HT, Samms-Vaughan M, Bressler J, Lee M, Byrd-Williams C, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA, Rahbar MH
Tests whether the heavy-metal by GST interaction in ASD differs by sex in Jamaican children.
- 2023New England Journal of Medicine520 citations
Trial of endovascular thrombectomy for large ischemic strokes
Sarraj A, Hassan AE, Abraham MG, Ortega-Gutierrez S, Kasner SE, Hussain MS, Chen M, Blackburn S, Sitton CW, Churilov L, Rahbar MH, Hill MD, Grotta JC, Ribo M, Campbell BCV, Albers GW, SELECT2 Investigators (incl. M. Hessabi, Data Manager)
The primary SELECT2 publication. Established that endovascular thrombectomy improves functional outcomes in patients with large ischemic strokes, reshaping acute stroke guidelines.
StrokeDOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2214403 - 2022Genes9 citations
Interactions between environmental factors and glutathione S-transferase (GST) genes with respect to detectable blood aluminum concentrations in Jamaican children
Rahbar MH, Samms-Vaughan M, Zhao Y, Saroukhani S, Bressler J, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA
Environmental-factor by GST-gene interactions in relation to detectable blood aluminum in Jamaican children.
- 2022Genes12 citations
Detoxification role of metabolic glutathione S-transferase (GST) genes in blood lead concentrations of Jamaican children with and without autism spectrum disorder
Rahbar MH, Samms-Vaughan M, Kim S, Saroukhani S, Bressler J, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA
Evaluates how GST-mediated detoxification shapes blood lead concentrations in Jamaican children, with and without ASD.
- 2022Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology82 citations
Younger age of stroke in low-middle income countries is related to healthcare access and quality
Rahbar MH, Medrano M, Diaz-Garelli F, Gonzalez Villaman C, Saroukhani S, Kim S, Tahanan A, Franco Y, Castro-Tejada G, Diaz SA, Hessabi M, Savitz SI
Cross-national analysis linking younger stroke onset in LMICs to healthcare access and quality, highlighting modifiable population-level determinants.
StrokeDOI: 10.1002/acn3.51527 · PMCID: PMC8935275 - 2022Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition23 citations
Fungi: friend or foe? A mycobiome evaluation in children with autism and gastrointestinal symptoms
Alookaran J, Liu Y, Auchtung TA, Tahanan A, Hessabi M, Asgarisabet P, Rahbar MH, Fatheree NY, Pearson DA, Mansour R, Van Arsdall MR, Navarro F, Rhoads JM
Characterization of fungal communities in the gut of children with autism and GI symptoms, shifting attention beyond bacteria alone.
- 2021International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health28 citations
Concentrations of lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, manganese, and aluminum in the blood of Pakistani children with and without autism spectrum disorder and their associated factors
Rahbar MH, Ibrahim SH, Azam SI, Hessabi M, Karim F, Kim S, Zhang J, Gulzar Ali N, Loveland KA
Extends the ERAJ environmental-exposure framework to a Pakistani cohort, broadening the generalizability of heavy-metal findings in ASD research.
- 2021Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders18 citations
Interaction of blood manganese concentrations with GSTT1 in relation to autism spectrum disorder in Jamaican children
Rahbar MH, Samms-Vaughan M, Saroukhani S, Lee M, Zhang J, Bressler J, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA
Formal gene-environment interaction analysis showing GSTT1 genotype modifies the association between blood manganese and ASD.
- 2020Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders38 citations
Perinatal factors associated with autism spectrum disorder in Jamaican children
Saroukhani S, Samms-Vaughan M, Lee M, Bach MA, Bressler J, Hessabi M, Grove ML, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Loveland KA, Rahbar MH
Case-control analysis of perinatal factors associated with ASD in Jamaican children, identifying risk factors generalizable to other Caribbean populations.
AutismDOI: 10.1007/s10803-019-04229-0 · PMCID: PMC7080579 - 2019International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health21 citations
Concentrations of lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, manganese, and aluminum in blood of Romanian children suspected of having autism spectrum disorder
Hessabi M, Rahbar MH, Dobrescu I, Bach MA, Kobylinska L, Bressler J, Grove ML, Loveland KA, Mihailescu I, Nedelcu CM, Moisescu GM, Matei MB, Matei OC, Rad F
First-author paper. Extends the ERAJ heavy-metal framework to a Romanian cohort of children suspected of having ASD.
- 2017Journal of Pediatrics92 citations
Lactobacillus reuteri for infants with colic: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial
Fatheree NY, Liu Y, Taylor CM, Hoang TK, Cai C, Rahbar MH, Hessabi M, Ferris M, McMurtry V, Wong C, Vu T, Dancsak T, Wang T, Gleason W, Bandla V, Navarro F, Tran DQ, Rhoads JM
Rigorous double-blind RCT of L. reuteri for infant colic. Widely cited in probiotics and pediatric GI literature for its methodological care.
- 2017Autism58 citations
The diagnosis of autism and autism spectrum disorder in low and middle income countries: experience from Jamaica
Samms-Vaughan M, Rahbar MH, Dickerson AS, Loveland KA, Hessabi M, Pearson DA, Bressler J, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Grove ML, Boerwinkle E
Adapts ADOS, ADI-R, and CARS for use in Jamaica. A foundational methodology paper for autism research in low- and middle-income settings.
- 2014Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders52 citations
Role of fruits, grains, and seafood consumption in blood cadmium concentrations of Jamaican children with and without autism spectrum disorder
Rahbar MH, Samms-Vaughan M, Dickerson AS, Loveland KA, Ardjomand-Hessabi M, Bressler J, Lee MJ, Shakespeare-Pellington S, Grove ML, Pearson DA, Boerwinkle E
Quantifies how dietary sources shape blood cadmium in Jamaican children, extending the environmental-exposure framework of ERAJ to cadmium.
- 2013Neurotoxicity Research85 citations
Seafood consumption and blood mercury concentrations in Jamaican children with and without autism spectrum disorders
Rahbar MH, Samms-Vaughan M, Loveland KA, Ardjomand-Hessabi M, Chen Z, Bressler J
One of the ERAJ program's most-cited papers. Establishes the dietary-mercury signal in a middle-income country cohort of children with and without ASD.
- 2012Science of The Total Environment78 citations
The role of drinking water sources, consumption of vegetables and seafood in relation to blood arsenic concentrations of Jamaican children with and without autism spectrum disorders
Rahbar MH, Samms-Vaughan M, Ardjomand-Hessabi M, Loveland KA, Dickerson AS, Chen Z
Foundational ERAJ environmental-exposure paper mapping the relationship between drinking-water source and dietary patterns and blood arsenic in Jamaican children.
- 2011Contemporary Clinical Trials26 citations
Coordination and management of multisite complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies: experience from a multisite reflexology intervention trial
Rahbar MH, Ardjomand-Hessabi M, Del Junco DJ, Gleeson SP, Dash C
Methodological paper on running multisite complementary-medicine trials rigorously. Reflects Dr. Hessabi's deep involvement in trial operations and data management.
MethodsDOI: 10.1016/j.cct.2011.05.004 · PMCID: PMC3156393